


Voyages Home

by unwillingadventurer



Category: Doctor Who (1963), Star Trek: Voyager
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-25
Updated: 2017-10-25
Packaged: 2019-01-23 01:06:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,320
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12494988
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/unwillingadventurer/pseuds/unwillingadventurer
Summary: When the TARDIS materialises on the bridge of the Starship Voyager, the two crews get to know each other.





	Voyages Home

The bridge of the Federation Starship Voyager had been silent for quite some time. There were routine checks of course but the work day had been slow and Commander Chakotay and Captain Janeway sat chatting quietly in their chairs, with conversations focused upon their latest holo-deck excursions rather than the latest technical updates on the ship. Tuvok and Harry Kim were repeating the same actions over and over again at their stations, but where Tuvok seemed focused and sharp; Harry’s attentions were wavering as though he was daydreaming about being someplace where some action was happening, away from the tedium of the last few days without any excitement. 

Chakotay looked at the young ensign who was yawning, and smiled. “Hope we’re not keeping you from more interesting endeavours, Ensign,” he teased.

Harry stood to attention, bolt upright at the mention of his name. “Sorry Commander, I was light-years away.”

“So we can see,” Janeway added with a smirk directed chiefly at her second in command.

Tom Paris spun around in his chair, his once amused face turning serious when he heard something unfamiliar. “Anyone else hear that?” he asked as a wheezing, groaning noise rang out around them. He’d never heard a noise like it before and didn’t want to admit he thought it sounded like an elephant had landed on the bridge.

“Red alert,” Janeway said as something began to materialise right in front of them. The ship’s systems obeyed her commands and the room fell dark within moments, emitting a red light, and the sound of an alarm blaring out around them. She looked at Harry. “Looks like you may have your excitement after all, Mr. Kim.”

Tuvok reached for his phaser and signalled for two crew members to join him. They headed forward slowly to where a large object was forming in the centre of the bridge. As the noise ceased and the object became solid, Tuvok aimed his phaser at what appeared to be two blue doors. 

“It’s a box!” Harry said. “A large blue box!”

“Lifesigns?” Janeway asked.

Harry pressed away at his console. “I’m reading four, Captain- three human, one un-identified. I’m not reading any weapon signatures.”

“Human!” she replied, half with excitement, half with anticipation.

“Why aren’t they coming out?” Harry said.

“You know, Captain,” Paris interjected from the helm. “That box looks surprisingly like a 20th century relic. In England they used to have these as a form of communicating with the cops before portable communication devices were invented.”

Chakotay’s eyebrow rose. “You know there are times when your penchant for the past comes in handy, Lieutenant.”

“I have my uses.”

“But why would it be here?” Janeway said, waving her hands about in the air. “Why would it be here in the Delta Quadrant?”

“Perhaps…it is as lost as we are,” Tuvok said. Janeway was certain that Tuvok had been attempting humour on her behalf.

It was with baited breath that they waited as the small doors of the box opened and four people stepped out, confused as to where they were, clearly not landing where they were supposed to have landed. There was an old man wearing some old fashioned clothing, a man and a woman of around thirty years of age dressed casually, and finally a young girl in her teens, with pigtails in her hair and wearing an oversized jumper and leggings. The young woman of the group gasped when she saw the phaser pointed directly at them and clung onto the young man for support.

“Sorry for the intrusion,” the young man said, holding his hands in the air in some form of surrender. “I’m Ian Chesterton. This is Barbara Wright, Vicki, and the Doctor.”

Janeway nodded, realising they were not hostile and looked just as confused as she did. She gestured to Tuvok to stand down for the time being. 

“Doctor,” the young man of the group said to the older white-haired man beside him. “I see we’ve landed inside something again.”

“I can see that, dear boy.”

Janeway stepped forward and placed her hands on her hips. “I’m Captain Kathryn Janeway of the Federation Starship Voyager and this is my ship and my crew. Would you mind telling me who you are and how you managed to arrive on my bridge without being detected by our sensors?” 

“It was quite accidental,” the Doctor told her. “A miscalculation in my ship I suppose you could call it.”

“That’s a ship?” Paris said in amazement as he looked at the blue police box. “Must be a tight squeeze.”

“I don’t discuss its science,” the Doctor said grumpily as he rubbed what appeared to be an injured arm, seeming annoyed at the interrogation.

“Ordinarily I wouldn’t ask you to,” Janeway said. “But you did just intrude on my vessel, so questions have got to be asked.” She looked at Barbara. “Are you the captain of your crew?”

Ian smiled as he peered at the Doctor’s face to see if he was irritated at the comment but was surprised to find he wasn’t. He then nudged Barbara playfully.

Barbara stepped forward, easing gently past Tuvok who was still holding the phaser tight in his grasp. “No, we’re a team of travellers. We don’t have a captain as such. We didn’t mean to intrude, this was all a mistake, you see. We’re just trying to get home and-”

“You’re trying to get home too?” Harry asked.

“Yes, the Doctor’s trying to get Ian and I back to London.”

Chakotay and Janeway exchanged glances.

…

After their unconventional meeting on the bridge, Tuvok and Janeway escorted the guests to sickbay. The white-haired Doctor had been injured in his own vessel and although they were unlikely to be hostile, Janeway had many more questions she needed answering. On their way from the bridge, Ian had explained how they had accidentally arrived and that the Doctor’s ship was damaged. During repairs carried out, the Doctor had been injured and they’d materialised on Voyager by mistake. The strangest thing was that the ship was a time machine too and the two young adults were from the 20th century travelling inside a police box vessel that was a ship of extra-terrestrial origins invented by the Doctor’s people. She’d never heard of anything like it and she was beginning to get a headache.

When they reached sick-bay, Voyager’s own doctor- the holographic sort- was waiting for them eagerly. “I hear we have some guests,” he said.

The time travellers stepped into the bright lights of sickbay and stared in amazement as they looked around the clinical room which was neat and orderly. 

Janeway motioned to the old man that he could take a seat and then looked at her medical officer. “This is the Doctor.” She looked back at the old man. “And this is also the Doctor. We’re gonna need first names at this rate.”

The holographic Doctor leaned over the old man and pulled out his tricorder and medical scanning device, holding the contraption over the other Doctor. “A first name was an option, but alas a Herculean task and one I never managed.”

“Quite so.”

Ian looked at Barbara. Did the Doctor even have a real name?

The holographic Doctor whistled as he again began scanning the Doctor made of flesh and bone. “Interesting.”

The old man blustered. “Do you mind telling me what you’re doing?”

“I’m fixing your injuries, but I can always stop if it’s an inconvenience. You have an unusual physiology.”

The old Doctor hushed the medical man and stopped the conversation before any of his friends found out all his secrets. 

“Fascinating,” Ian said as he watched the ship’s Doctor heal his Doctor’s arm wound with a thing that looked like a small torch. “How do you do that?”

The holographic Doctor bristled with pride. “Oh I am programmed with many capabilities, and a vast knowledge of almost every species. Of course this procedure is only minor and does not showcase my breadth of medical dexterity.”

Vicki laughed. “Sounds just like our Doctor- modest!”

Barbara thought for a moment, having been silent since they’d arrived in the medical bay. “Programmed?”

“The Doctor’s not flesh and bone like us,” Janeway said. “He’s a holographic projection but still a valued member of our crew.”

The old man’s interest piqued at the news. “Your medical officer is a hologram? Fascinating!” He chuckled suddenly, surprising everyone and even provoking an eyebrow rise from Tuvok.

The white-haired Doctor patted the holographic Doctor’s arm. “My dear man, you must talk to me about everything, I find this concept most exciting.”

The holographic Doctor smiled. “Well at least someone appreciates how exciting I am.”

Janeway grinned. “Well, let’s leave the Doctors to it. In the meantime, come on Tuvok- let’s show our human friends around the ship.”

…

 

Harry Kim led an eager skipping Vicki into engineering and introduced her to B’Elanna Torres, the chief engineer who was busy checking the plasma grid. Vicki’s eyes widened as she looked at the warp core in the centre of the room, glowing blue and bright and pulsing with energy. In a way she supposed it was like the central rotor of the TARDIS, providing distance and space and beauty along with it. 

“We didn’t have one as big as that on our ship,” she said as she circled it, “before I travelled with the Doctor, I was a crew member like you guys, travelling to the planet Astra. We were a small ship but my father was an engineer too and he’d have loved to have worked on this kind of scale.”

B’Elanna smiled lightly. “Glad to hear we meet your approval.”

“Of course this is slightly old-fashioned technology from my time in the 25th Century but still…”

Harry smirked at B’Elanna as her face tightened, wondering why a teenager was insulting their ‘primitive’ technology and why Harry was on babysitting duty.

“Sorry, who is this again?”

Harry tapped the young girl on the shoulder. “This is Vicki, one of the humans who arrived on the bridge- they’re trying to get back to Earth too.”

“Oh.” B’Elanna’s face softened again and she managed a quick smile at the teenager. “Well, good luck.”

“Thank you,” Vicki said. “Ian and Barbara are anxious to get home but stopping off on spaceships like this are always a fun way to spend time.”

“Vicki wants me to show her around the ship,” Harry said. “Care to tag along?”

B’Elanna grinned. “My duty shift isn’t over for an hour. Guess it’s just the two of you.”

Harry scowled at his engineer friend as Vicki linked her arm through his and asked him to show her every square inch of the ship. Harry had never had a little sister and had always wanted one, now he was starting to think he was getting his wish.

…

Tuvok led Ian Chesterton into a small room where a woman was manning a large work station and busy tapping away at a console full of lights and buttons. 

“This is the transporter room,” Tuvok said, indicating the platform in the centre of the room. “Are you familiar with the technology?”

Ian’s eyes widened in amazement and he stared at the little platform in front of them. “No, it’s mostly new to me. Can I see it in action? Can I be transported somewhere?”

“I don’t think that is a logical use of our time. I can explain its science as we continue on the tour of the ship.” Tuvok was about to escort Ian outside when he observed the young man climb onto the floor of the transporter platform and lie down.

“What may I ask are you doing?”

Ian laughed. “I’m pretending to be transported- imagining my molecules flying away and re-forming. I’ve been transported once, but it wasn’t as sophisticated as this.”

“Why are you lying down?”

“I thought that was how it worked here.”

“People are not transported asleep, Mr. Chesterton, that would be most illogical.”

Ian laughed. “I was joking Tuvok, though wouldn’t that be more comfy!”

“Human practices of humour do not affect me, Mr. Chesterton. I am Vulcan.”

Ian smiled, stood up and dusted himself off. “And I’m sure Vulcans are a very interesting people. I’d like to hear more about you and your kind.”

“Hear more?”

“Yeah a brief biography maybe, we don’t get much time to chat to other species. Normally we’re running for our lives from alien menaces like Daleks and Voord.”

Tuvok’s eyebrow rose. “Tell me more about these Daleks. I am unfamiliar with the species.”

“Hope you’ve got a lot of time. You know, you could also call me head of security of my crew. I’m definitely the assigned muscle of our group.”

“A crew of four people, one of whom is an elderly man, another a young girl?”

Ian frowned.

…

Janeway led Barbara into the astro-metrics lab and introduced her to Seven of Nine who was busy imputing data into a computer, her fingers tapping away at tremendous speed.

“Seven, this is one of the humans who arrived. We’re hoping to exchange ideas and pleasantries of course.”

Seven nodded but noticed that Barbara was discreetly trying to look at her Borg implants. “Yes, I used to be Borg,” she said matter-of-factly. “I am now integrated into this crew and living as an individual, you have no reason to fear me.” She still felt the desire to tell people she was no longer a threat.

Barbara seemed embarrassed. “Oh I didn’t mean to stare and I have no idea what Borg is but you seem very welcoming and hard at work I see.”

“It is the most efficient way to spend time.” She looked at Captain Janeway and then paused, remembering the captain’s advice that she should be more expressive. She then looked at Barbara. “And what is your role within your crew?”

Barbara smiled. “Well I’m actually a history teacher; I don’t really have a specific role, but when the ship lands in another era of time, well then I’m really in my element, unless I try to get involved and change history.” She let out a small giggle.

Janeway nodded in agreement. “Yes, I’ve learnt never to get involved in changing history myself, though I’ve not been very good at sticking to the rules. And your friend Ian, what does he do?”

“Oh he’s a science teacher, we’re quite the team.”

 

Janeway nodded. “Well, history and science are both equally important to our very being. Don’t you think so, Seven?”

“Our past defines who we are and science defines what we are,” Seven replied. “Is that an adequate response?

Janeway laughed. “Your responses don’t need to be adequate, Seven, they just need to be yours.”

…

The Doctor and the Doctor wandered around sickbay looking at various apparatus and data. The holographic Doctor was in his element as the old man gawped and beamed at every thing he showed him. 

“I must say,” the holographic Doctor said. “It’s a real joy to be in the presence of someone who wishes to examine the vital role I play on this ship.”

The old Doctor chuckled. “I’m familiar with photonic energy and its processes but I must say, what intrigues me most is the structure of this crew and your place within it.”

“I suppose you could say the sickbay and I are the heart of the vessel- we’re beating, we’re blood carrying vital oxygen to the other parts of the body, or ship in this case. Health is a number one priority and when the crew is healthy the ship runs more smoothly.”

The old Doctor chuckled again. “You have forged friendships under extreme circumstances too. I for one can relate to that.”

“You did not start as friends?”

“Oh no, no. Chesterfield, Barbara and myself were not quite as friendly as we are now. In fact Chesterton got quite on my nerves.”

The holographic Doctor nodded and looked over his tricorder data. “Sounds just like Mr. Paris.”

…

Vicki smiled at Harry as he sat back down at the table in the mess hall having fetched a cup of coffee from the replicator. She handed him his tricorder and pointed to the data. “I’ve put some information onto there for you,” she told him.

“Well, uh, thank you,” he replied. “So would you like to take a break? We are in the mess hall and I could do with some food to accompany my coffee.”

“Sounds marvellous,” Vicki said. “On our ship we just eat out of food packets but you have your own chef and kitchen here.”

At the mention of the word ‘chef’, Neelix appeared at the table holding a massive frying pan. His grin was the widest Vicki had ever seen and she thought he was the cutest looking species she’d encountered with all the little markings on his face and the facial whiskers too. She was wondering whether it’d be impolite to ask if she could put his long hair into pigtails like her own.

“And who have we here?” Neelix asked, leaning over her.

“I’m Vicki.”

“Oh yes, one of the human guests, well its lovely to meet you. You must be very hungry after your tour with Mr. Kim, how about a big helping of fried Malaka?” He tapped the side of the pan with a spatula.

Vicki stared into the frying pan and grimaced at the sight of black and green meat. “What is that?”

“A Talaxian delicacy, you’re bound to love it.”

Vicki didn’t want to offend his culture so she nodded and agreed to sample some of the food. Neelix appeared to be watching her, waiting for her to take the first bite and let him know what she thought. 

She attempted to chew whatever it was but it was tough and gristly. The taste was surprisingly nice but the texture was another matter and much too tough for her human teeth. “Well it’s very tasty anyway.”

Neelix beamed with pride and let out a series of pleased giggles as she discreetly tried to chew the remaining chunk in her mouth. 

“Well you’re a very polite young lady and so I’ll whip you up a nice dessert for afterwards.” He smiled and left the table.

“Have you got a death wish?” Harry said with humour. “My advice? Tell him you have allergies. I’m allergic to Talaxian dishes now, well I was according to the Doctor’s report, well the Doctor’s report I programmed myself. Don’t tell anyone I told you that.”

Vicki laughed. The seemingly obedient puppy Harry Kim was more devious than he looked. 

The door to the mess hall opened with a whooshing noise and Ian and Tuvok entered the room, deep in what looked like a one-sided conversation on Ian’s part. Tuvok immediately made his excuses to leave, indicating that Harry was in charge and relished in getting back to the bridge. The never ending science questions from Ian Chesterton were beginning to become repetitive to Tuvok’s Vulcan sensitivities. 

Ian approached Vicki and sat down. “What’s for lunch?”

“The whole universe if you want it.”

“Where’s Barbara?”

“She’s with Captain Janeway still, think they’ve gone on a trip to the Jeffries tubes.”

“Barbara and the Captain are getting on like a house on fire, aren’t they? Wish I could say the same thing for me and Tuvok. I didn’t even get the chance to show him my neck pinch.”

…

 

“You know, I haven’t talked quite like this in some time,” Janeway said as she and Barbara walked out of the turbo-lift and ventured along one of the decks toward the mess hall. “Not that my crew don’t have their fun of course, its just we hardly have the time to meet other humans, ones we’re not surrounded by week in week out.”

Barbara smiled warmly. “I know what you mean. My friends are very important to me but I do miss other company- my mother, my colleagues. It can get very lonely at times being so far from home with no way to contact them to let them know you’re safe.”

“And that nagging fear that no matter what you do, you’ll never get home.” Janeway stared ahead for a moment, thinking, wondering, and Barbara had the urge to do the same, just think for a few minutes about what they had left behind and what they were going to do next in the grand vastness of space. 

But before Barbara had the chance to think, Janeway was talking again and for the first few sentences, Barbara had no idea what the woman was saying, so lost in her own thoughts. 

“Of course, not getting home isn’t an option.” Janeway flashed a smile. “I’m not giving up.”

“Me either,” Barbara said. “As soon as Ian and I find an opportunity, we’re taking it!”

“That’s what I like to hear. You’re my kind of woman.”

They reached the mess hall and met up with Chakotay who was standing by the doorway. “I see you ladies have got straight down to business?”

“Barbara has been on a deck by deck tour, Chakotay, its high time for some light refreshments.”

Chakotay indicated to where Ian and Vicki were already seated at a table eating some kind of dessert prepared by Neelix. Harry had promptly taken the opportunity to hand over the babysitting duties to his commander. Barbara immediately raced over to see her friends and sat beside them.

“Oh Ian, Vicki, this place is unreal,” she said.

“More unreal than the Doctor’s TARDIS?” Ian asked.

“Different kind of unreal. I must say it’s very…efficient.”

“Definitely not like the Doctor’s TARDIS then.”

Barbara leaned over to inspect Ian’s dessert and took a sniff. “Is that strawberry?”

He shrugged. “I have no idea what I’ve been eating, the chef here’s been piling things on my plate for an hour but it’s so delicious I’ve not asked.”

Barbara smiled. “Oh Ian, it’s much too rich for one person, give me that spoon.” She didn’t wait for his response and instead took the empty spoon and reached over his plate and scooped up a massive pile of what looked like cream and red sauce of some kind. She shovelled it into her mouth and Vicki laughed as the schoolteacher wiped off a large amount of cream from her chin. “Oh that hits the spot.”

Ian nudged Vicki. “Maybe I could kidnap the chef, put him inside the food machine and let him serve us instead of those packet things.”

“We should just take Neelix with us anyway,” Vicki said. “I think he’d look very pretty in pigtails.”

Janeway and Chakotay laughed from the other side of the mess hall as the captain downed her much needed coffee and they observed their new friends. 

“You think they have anything to trade with us?” Chakotay said as he sneakily tried to steal a potato slice from her plate. 

“Tuvok can’t get inside their ship, B’Elanna can’t either. The old man says there’s nothing of use in there and the size would back up that idea, but I don’t know Chakotay, there’s more to them than that. The old man has alien technology, is an alien himself, one we’ve never encountered, not even on the database. I believe they’re stranded in space just as we are, but there’s definitely more to them than that.”

“There’s definitely something magical about them, I will say that.” He grabbed the potato and placed it in his mouth quickly just as the captain noticed.

“Hands off, Commander, I’m starving!”

Chakotay laughed. “Should have been quicker, Captain.”

…

When Vicki entered the astro-metrics lab later that day looking for the Doctor, she found him bent over a console examining a screen with his monocle.

She ran up to him and hugged him. “There you are, Doctor. There’s so many things about the ship I wanted to tell you.”

Seven of Nine observed their behaviour as though she was studying them, peering from behind her own work station, analysing their body language, their speech patterns and their ways of communicating and relating to one another. From first analysis, she came to the conclusion that the two were similar to two members of the same family, possibly the relationship between a senior member of a familial unit and one of the younger members who was reaching maturity. The old Doctor took on a mentor approach in his manner with her, teaching her at every opportune moment but taking the time to comfort her and relish in her company. 

“Come along my child, we must get a few things done before we can leave. I’ve a little something I want to give these people but let’s keep that a little secret hmmm?”

He turned to look at Seven. “Goodbye my dear Four of Six, lovely to work alongside you.”

“It is Seven of Nine.”

The Doctor chuckled, waving his handkerchief about in the air. “I know, my dear, I know, I was teasing you.”

Vicki laughed. “Ignore him, Seven, he’s not very good with names, he gets Ian’s wrong all the time.”

“I do nothing of the sort. Speaking of Chesterton, where are he and Barbara?”

They waved goodbye to Seven and exited the lab and were escorted by another crewmember along the deck. 

“They’re enjoying a holo-deck programme with Tom and B’Elanna- shall we go and see what they’re up to?”

…

Ian let out a sigh of satisfaction as he sat on a sun lounger. A woman in a swimsuit, wearing a flower garland around her neck, rubbed his back, easing away all his aches and pains. 

“This is the life, Barbara,” he said as he looked over at her and B’Elanna sitting at one of the tables drinking drinks out of coconut shells.

Ian and Tom were sat next to each other on the loungers, wearing Hawaiian shirts and straw hats. 

“Look at those two idling,” B’Elanna said. She looked at Tom and raised her voice. “This is meant to be a double date isn’t it?”

Barbara hadn’t the faintest idea where Tom and B’Elanna had got the idea she and Ian were a couple but they didn’t really mind going along with the charade for a much needed break in a holographic environment. Ian was astonished that any place or time could be replicated around them and Barbara wished she’d had time to visit some time periods without the threat of becoming involved, especially the Leonardo Da Vinci programme that Janeway was so fond of.

Tom and Ian got up from their loungers and joined the women at the table.   
Tom squinted in the artificial sunlight. “So, you’re both from the 1960’s huh? I love that time period on Earth.”

B’Elanna’s eyes rolled upwards. “Oh now he’s started!”

“Give me a break, B’Elanna, how often is it you run into other humans from the Alpha Quadrant, especially ones who time travelled from the 20th century. So, what was it like when man walked on the moon?”

Ian and Barbara exchanged glances. “I’m sure it’s wonderful,” Ian said. “When it happens, which to say, it obviously hasn’t happened yet.”

Tom looked down at his shoes. “Oops, guess I should have asked what exact year you came from. Well, try and act surprised.” He laughed.

Before Tom had a chance to ask a multitude of questions about 1960’s automobiles, movies and television shows, the Doctor and Vicki appeared beside them at the table.

“Oh so this is where you guys hang out,” Vicki said, looking around at all the holographic men and women in swimwear displaying rather perfect looking bodies. 

The Doctor smiled as a woman placed a garland around his neck and handed him a drink. “Thank you, my dear, yes, very kind.”

Vicki however was annoyed that she wasn’t offered one.

“We need to get one of these holo-decks on the TARDIS,” she said, taking a sip of Barbara’s drink as she leaned over the table. “Of course we had them on Earth when I left but they were very exclusive and always fully booked, not to mention expensive.”

The Doctor pulled her away from the table.“And as marvellous as it is, my child, we really must be off. We have taken up far too much of our host’s valuable time. We must get on with our own journey hmmm?”

Tom Paris got up and stood next to the Doctor. “So soon, but there’s so many things about the 20th Century I’d like to know?”

B’Elanna pulled Tom back down to his seat. “Looks like it’ll have to wait.”

…

The Doctor patted the TARDIS doors fondly as soon as they had reached the bridge, and Janeway and Chakotay watched on as the four time travellers stopped outside and turned back to face them.

The Doctor held out his hand for Janeway to shake. “My dear lady, you run a tight ship, I must commend you on your hospitality towards us.”

“You’re very welcome,” Chakotay added.

“If only there was something we could have given you to get home.” Barbara looked down sadly, feeling guilty for taking so much from the crew, but giving them so little. She found comfort from Ian’s hand as it grabbed hers.

“Oh we’ll find a way home, don’t you worry about that.” Janeway glanced at Harry and smiled broadly, always reassuring the young ensign more than anyone else on her crew. 

Barbara knew the captain meant every word of it and with her steely determination, she had a feeling they would make it one day. If only she had the same optimism for her and Ian reaching the same fate.

“We wish you luck in getting back to London in your own century,” Janeway said. 

The Doctor harrumphed, not thrilled at the suggestion that he was useless at piloting his own vessel, but he kept quiet, not keen to dampen the mood at the respectable farewell taking place.

“Well come along, come along,” he said to his friends, ushering them inside the box. “We have worlds to explore, goodbye friends.”

Chakotay, Janeway, Tuvok and Harry watched as the travellers closed the doors behind them and dematerialised right in front of them, the box vanishing in moments- making the strange noise it had done when it had appeared earlier that day. 

Janeway shivered. “I wonder if they’ll make it home.” She turned to look at Tuvok. “What would you think the probability would be of them making it?”

Tuvok thought for a moment. “I think it is probable that they won’t stop trying…much like us.”

“Well said Tuvok,” she said. 

Their moment of reflection for their journey ahead was interrupted as Neelix burst through the door. “Did I miss them, are they gone?”

Everyone on the bridge turned to look at the Talaxian, ready to tell him that indeed they had gone inside their ship but when they saw him, each of them (aside from Tuvok of course) started to laugh. Neelix stood before them on the bridge with his hair put into pigtails exactly like Vicki’s hairstyle.

“The young lady expressed she’d like to see my hair this way,” he said sheepishly.

“Well, I’m afraid she’s gone, but we’re all very glad to witness it,” Janeway said, trying not to laugh more than she was. 

A voice came over the com system. “Lieutenant Torres to the bridge.”

“Go ahead, B’Elanna.”

“You’re not going to believe this Captain but there’s a large quantity of dilithium here that wasn’t before. You should get down to engineering. I think our friends have given us a parting gift after all.”

Janeway’s eyes widened and a tear formed in the corner of one of them. “I wonder who they were really, four strange travellers passing through in a blue box with almost magical capabilities.” She thought for a moment and then let out a smile. “Torres, I’m on my way.”


End file.
